this year the senate foreign relations committee under the leadership of chairman john kerry and ranking minority member richard lugar celebrateds the it 22nd anniversary of the act by reporting on the rights of persons with disabilities on a strong bipartisan basis. i want to personally thank senator kerry and senator lugar for moving the treaty through the committee process. it was -- the treaty through the committee process. it was a hectic time. they made a point of making certain that we brought this issue forward. personal thanks to my friend, senator john mccain, who's on the floor at this moment for making this a bipartisan effort. i also want to thank senators barrasso, harkin, tom udall, moran, and coons for their bipartisan support and dedication to the passage and ratification of this important treaty. now is the time for the full senate to affirm our nation's leadership on disability issues by ratifying this important treaty. and we should do so with strong, bipartisan support that has always characterized the efforts we've had on disabilities. the support 2340 for this trea